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How Much Should A Home Inspection Cost?

August 27, 2016

Price shopping home inspectors?

Inspection fees vary considerably and yet we find people calling around to see who can offer the cheapest, without asking the real questions – like experience, depth of inspection and different services offered.

There are inspectors who charge as little as $350, no matter the size of the house or how complicated it is to inspect. A seasoned home inspector might charge a few hundred dollars more then the ” cheap priced” inspector, but even that is still a bargain. If the inspection fee on a $600,000 house is $600, that’s .001% of the cost of the house.

Real estate agencies charge 3.0% to 6.0% to sell a house, that’s $18,000 to $36,000 for a $600,000 house! If the owner of a house is willing to pay a real estate agent $18,000 to $36,000 to sell a house, is $600 too much to find out the property’s true condition?

What have you saved when the “cheap priced” inspector fails to uncover a major (expensive) issue or fails to properly convey important findings?

Have you viewed a sample report from the “competitively priced” inspection company?

Does it include photo documentation? (unlikely) Is it a handwritten checklist report? (likely)

If a thorough inspection, full narrative report and photo editing of an average size home takes 5 to 7 hours, (not counting travel time) how “thorough” is the inspector who does two inspections and reports in a day?

With home prices on the rise, it is time to evaluate the choice of using a home inspector, who is not only experienced, impartial but also independent.